Nehi facts for kids
Advertisement for Nehi soda on a matchcover
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| Type | Soda |
|---|---|
| Inventor | Claud A. Hatcher |
| Inception | 1924 |
| Manufacturer | Nehi Corporation (1928–1955), Royal Crown Company (1955–2008), Dr Pepper Snapple Group (2008–present) |
| Available | Yes |
| Website | Lua error in Module:WikidataIB at line 168: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value). |
Nehi (pronounced "knee high") is a yummy fruit-flavored soft drink that first came out in the United States. It was created in 1924 by a grocer named Claud A. Hatcher in Columbus, Georgia. He had already been making ginger ale and root beer since 1905!
The company that made Nehi was first called Chero-Cola/Union Bottle Works. After Nehi sodas became super popular, the company changed its name to "Nehi Corporation" in 1928. Later, in 1955, they changed their name again to Royal Crown Company, because their RC Cola drink was doing so well. Today, Nehi is part of a bigger company called Keurig Dr Pepper.
The Story of Nehi Soda
How Nehi Began
The Chero-Cola company added Nehi soda to its drinks in 1924. They wanted to offer more fun flavors! The idea for Nehi came from Claud A. Hatcher. The name "Nehi" was chosen to remind people that the bottles were tall, like "knee-high"!
Nehi offered many flavors like orange, grape, root beer, and peach. It became popular very quickly. In fact, Nehi sold even better than the original Chero-Cola!
Growing Pains and New Leaders
The company changed its name to the Nehi Corporation in 1928. Things were going great until 1930. The Great Depression was happening, which was a time when many people lost jobs and money. Because of this, Nehi Corporation's sales dropped a lot. They lost money in 1932, which was the only time that ever happened.
By 1933, things started to get better. But then, Claud A. Hatcher, the person who started the company, sadly passed away. He was replaced by H. R. Mott, who had worked with the company for a long time. Mr. Mott worked hard to pay off the company's debts. Within a year, Nehi was doing well again!
Fun Advertising
In the early 1900s, Nehi's advertisements often showed a picture of a woman's legs. Her skirt was high enough to show her stockings up to her knee. This was a clever way to show how to say "Nehi" – like "knee-high"! You can even see this old logo in the movie Paper Moon.
Famous people also helped advertise Nehi. Robert Ripley talked about Nehi on his radio show, Ripley's Believe It or Not! Later, in the 1940s, stars like Bing Crosby, Joan Crawford, and Bob Hope helped sell Nehi drinks.
After World War II, the company grew even more. In 1947, the famous actress Hedy Lamarr was in Nehi ads. Back then, Nehi had over 10 flavors! Some of them were Dr. Nehi, Nehi Chocolate, Nehi Root Beer, Nehi Lemonade, Nehi Wild Red, and Nehi Blue Cream. Of course, they also had the classic Nehi Orange, Nehi Grape, and Nehi Peach. Over time, some of these less popular flavors were stopped.
A fun fact for TV fans: On the show M*A*S*H, which was set during the Korean War, the character Cpl. Walter "Radar" O'Reilly loved Grape Nehi!
